When Qin Jiujiu returned to the Li manor, it was just after dusk. She learned from Li Cuiya that Xie Jing had returned half an hour before her, but Xie Yun and Bai Qianluo had not returned since leaving that morning.
Qin Jiujiu felt it was the perfect time to act, so she changed her clothes in her room, took the items she had bought, and knocked on Xie Jing's door.
As soon as Xie Jing opened the door, he saw someone smiling obsequiously.
He still had a cold expression on his face. Qin Jiujiu noticed that Xie Jing had no intention of letting her in, so she said, "Second Young Master Xie, please make way..."
Xie Jing still didn't move. The smile on Qin Jiujiu's face froze, but she wouldn't give up so easily.
Did face matter when it came to food?
She explained to Xie Jing, "I'm here to give you something..."
However, Xie Jing, with his cold face, blocked Qin Jiujiu with words that were devoid of emotion and even tinged with sarcasm.
Xie Jing: "Miss Qin, I cannot accept this. Miss Qin should keep it for yourself!"
Then, she heard the sound of the door closing.
They said they wouldn't hit a smiling face, didn't they? Xie Jing was indeed not a normal person!
Qin Jiujiu stood at the door for a while, deciding to think of another plan. In the original novel, Xie Jing was a person who kept his emotions hidden, skilled in disguise. Although he wasn't as gentle as Xie Yun, he was always polite to others. At least, he didn't appear ill-tempered at first glance. Yet, Qin Jiujiu realized that he had begun to dislike her so much at some point.
Qin Jiujiu couldn't figure it out. He was still amiable to others, but there was something different about his attitude towards her. They were both cannon fodder, yet their treatment was different.
She couldn't understand. Had she already died, but somehow survived, leading to this difference?
Thinking about this trip to Li Family Town, Qin Jiujiu felt it was highly possible, especially since this plot point was not in the original.
Just as Qin Jiujiu was about to return to her room, Xie Yun and Bai Qianluo returned. Their complexions didn't look good, suggesting they hadn't had much success in the past few days.
Xie Yun happened to be planning to gather the four of them for a meeting to exchange their findings from the past few days. Seeing Qin Jiujiu standing at the door of his and Xie Jing's room, he directly called her in.
This door, she, Qin Jiujiu, had managed to enter after all.
She couldn't help but glance at Xie Jing's face. Xie Jing didn't look at her; he was standing to the side, as if he hadn't been the one to shut her out earlier.
While Xie Jing wasn't paying attention, Qin Jiujiu gave him a provocative glance. Unexpectedly, Xie Jing looked over at that exact moment. Once again, she met his eyes, with that provocative expression.
She was doomed! This was it. The favorability would definitely drop again. Xie Jing, being so narrow-minded, would surely want to kill her to vent his anger.
The system's voice did not chime in. Despite this, Qin Jiujiu dared not look at Xie Jing again. She might have lost her mind to act so recklessly. But now, enveloped by the fear of death, Qin Jiujiu vowed never to do so again.
Xie Jing continued to watch Qin Jiujiu even after she turned her head, so neither of them heard a single word Xie Yun and Bai Qianluo said.
He just wanted to know what kind of creature was in front of him!
She was clearly afraid of him, yet sometimes she was strange. Unlike others who feared him and only wanted to escape, she insisted on getting close to him. At times, her expressions suggested she wasn't afraid at all.
Xie Jing found Qin Jiujiu increasingly unfathomable, yet at the same time, he became more and more curious about her, even though she sometimes annoyed him.
"Yan Xing, do you have any findings?"
Xie Yun shifted the topic to Xie Jing. Qin Jiujiu wanted to see the villain's expression at this moment, but she was still too timid, so she lowered her head, not daring to look at Xie Jing.
"Nothing special. Li Zheng has been handling village affairs daily and hasn't seen anyone."
Xie Jing quickly withdrew his gaze from Qin Jiujiu and turned to Xie Yun. His actions were swift enough that Xie Yun and Bai Qianluo did not notice he had been staring at Qin Jiujiu moments before.
"I haven't made any special discoveries either. I plan to sneak into the Li manor tomorrow. For safety, Second Young Master Xie, would you accompany me!" Qin Jiujiu finally managed to say it. With Xie Yun and Bai Qianluo present, Xie Jing was highly likely to not object. Although he was undoubtedly unwilling and might even dislike her more, Qin Jiujiu decided to go all out for the chance to spend more time with Xie Jing.
As expected, Xie Jing did not object. However, there was a hint of strangeness in his gaze.
The next day, Qin Jiujiu deliberately woke up early. She had repeatedly instructed Bai Qianluo to wake her up promptly, for fear of missing Xie Jing.
After all, Xie Jing was not that patient, and she would feel ashamed if she made him wait.
Qin Jiujiu was still wearing an outfit similar in style to the female protagonist's. Although it wasn't male attire, Qin Jiujiu felt it was a form of androgynous style.
She had to admit, wearing clothes like this was much more convenient than a skirt!
The four of them acted according to their respective roles. Qin Jiujiu walked behind Xie Jing. His one-meter-eighty-five height was not for show; his long legs made Qin Jiujiu feel breathless compared to her short legs.
She had to jog to keep up with his pace, but Xie Jing showed no intention of waiting for her.
Qin Jiujiu complained in her heart, "Serves you right for being single!"
After walking for a while, Qin Jiujiu simply couldn't keep up anymore, so she slowed down behind him. Anyway, their destination was the Li manor, and she had been there yesterday, so she wasn't in a hurry.
Xie Jing noticed that the little short leg from before was gone. He looked back and saw her walking slowly behind, seemingly exhausted. He gradually slowed his pace.
Qin Jiujiu stared at the back of the person's head for a long time, pondering how to improve this devil's favorability. To her surprise, the person was getting closer.
Either she had sped up, or he had slowed down.
Was Xie Jing waiting for her?
Qin Jiujiu then ran forward and walked alongside Xie Jing.
She felt that to improve his favorability, she first needed to get familiar with Xie Jing, and the first thing to change was the way she addressed him. Qin Jiujiu recalled the way the white lotus supporting female characters addressed the male protagonist in the novel, so Qin Jiujiu said, "Brother Yan Xing..." Then she saw Xie Jing's face darken at a visible speed.
Could this tactic be ineffective?
She herself found the address rather mushy, but then she thought of those supporting female characters. Calling him that was very effective for them, especially in disrupting the relationship between the male and female protagonists!
Sacrificing a small pawn to win the game, Qin Jiujiu bravely did so, and then she was utterly embarrassed.
Xie Jing stopped walking and quietly looked at Qin Jiujiu. She suddenly felt as if his gaze was akin to looking at an idiot. Although she had never been looked at like an idiot before, at this moment, Qin Jiujiu felt that Xie Jing was looking at her that way.
Xie Jing looked at the person in front of him. He was very curious how someone could be so short. She looked up at him, her height only reaching his chest. The whole person was tiny, like a little girl. When she looked at him, her eyes were wide open. Her round face seemed to be dominated by just these eyes, with the other features taking up very little space.
He thought she looked foolish, but at the same time, he couldn't help but want to pinch her cheeks.
Xie Jing suddenly thought of something, the pastries Qin Jiujiu loved to eat: white, round little balls.
Wasn't her face just a collection of these little balls?
If Qin Jiujiu knew what Xie Jing was thinking, she would have jumped up to argue, "This is clearly an oval face, not a round face! It's just that the flesh on my cheeks is a bit more, and my chin is still pointed, okay!"
Xie Jing suddenly strode forward, leaving Qin Jiujiu bewildered in the wind.
The villain was too complicated! I have no idea what he's thinking. This mission is too difficult. When will I be able to complete it and go home!
Qin Jiujiu wailed inwardly, but she still had to keep up. Since Xie Jing hadn't rejected the address, it meant he had agreed, so Qin Jiujiu decided to call him that from now on!
System: "Yes, he didn't explicitly refuse, but he didn't agree either, did he? Besides, look at his expression. Does he look like someone who would agree?"
The system, having observed the entire interaction, couldn't help but silently complain. But this was its host, after all. No matter how foolish she was, it had to persevere with tears in its eyes.